Original Preds captain Fitzgerald retires

Tom Fitzgerald, the first captain in Predators franchise history, announced his retirement from the National Hockey League on Tuesday. The 38-year-old forward, who ends a 17-season career to step into a broadcast role for selected Boston Bruins games on New England Sports Network (NESN), posted 42 goals and 46 assists in 307 games for Nashville between 1998 and 2002. For his career, Fitzergald tallied 329 points (139g, 190a) in 1,097 games with seven teams--the New York Islanders, Florida, Colorado, Nashville, Chicago, Toronto and Boston.

Fitzgerald was a first-round pick (17th overall) of the Islanders at the 1986 Entry Draft. He turned professional for the 1988-89 season, splitting his first four pro years between the Islanders and the team's AHL affiliates in Springfield and Capital District. He enjoyed his best offensive seasons during a five-year stint in Florida, scoring a career-high 18 goals in 1993-94 and career-highs in assists (21) and points (34) in 1995-96, when he also made his only appearance in a Stanley Cup Final.

The Billerica, Mass. native signed with Nashville as a free agent on July 6, 1998 and was named team captain at that time. He was among the founding Predators in the lineup for the franchise's NHL debut on October 10 of that year. On October 27, 1998 at Vancouver, he notched his first goal/point in a Nashville uniform. Fitzgerald is currently tied for third on the Predators' all-time consecutive games played list after appearing in 245 straight games between Dec. 30, 1998 and Dec. 15, 2001.

Following stints with Chicago and Toronto, the 6'0", 195-pound right wing signed with Boston on July 28, 2004. He played one season for his hometown Bruins before announcing his retirement Tuesday.

The Predators organization congratulates "Fitzy" and wishes him the best in his future endeavors.